If an alien from outer space landed and just watched our 24/7 news channels, there would be an impression that America is one big city with a whole bunch of unfriendly mess going on. In fact, many people might get that idea. But there is still an America that is hometown, home grown, hospitable, friendly, caring and wholesome. You just have to know where to find it. A lot of what Chris and I try to do with the American Chronicles is find those people and places and share the good and fun parts of our country through our travels and interactions. Wherever we are, we are on the go to discover the adventure, big and small, and show the greatness in America. Sometimes it can be found in eggs and coffee.
We took off one morning on our trusty scooter to replenish our dwindling supply of coffee and eggs. The wind was brisk and gusty, providing quite the challenge to keep our two-wheeler on the straight path. A little while on the road and we came across the famous Black Dog Coffee Company just outside of Shenandoah Junction, WV. Black Dog is named for Bear, the original black coffee dog—kind of like Service Dog Charlie. Bear was special and “oversaw” every aspect of the growing coffee company until he passed in 2012. Black Dog procures the highest quality of beans from around the world and roasts them in one of the oldest roasters in the nation, named Plutonius, born 1931. Out of this small shop of American entrepreneurship comes some of the best coffee—it’s really our coffee of choice at home and on the road.
Next, was a drive down a windy winding backroad past horse farms and newly built houses to Missy’s farm. During the spring, summer and autumn months, Missy and her brother run The Fruit and Veggie Wagon just outside of Harpers Ferry, WV. From their old family farm, they grow vegetables and fruit, as well as serve as an outlet for local farm produce. Missy is older now and old-fashioned green houses and cold storage buildings inform visitors of a robust past where she was part of feeding probably the entire county. Now in her mid-70s, Missy still works the farm, man’s the veggie wagon, and is fighting off cancer. Chris called ahead and Missy set aside a couple dozen of fresh, organic pastured chicken eggs for us.
It is written in the good book that there is a season for everything and that mankind should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor because it is a gift of God. The America that Chris and I grew up in has changed a lot since our days on the farm as kids. But the spirit of America and the exceptionalism of Americans still lives on in the hearts of those who understand the American dream. From the young entrepreneurs like the owners of Black Dog Coffee to that hearty breed of American farmers who feed the world yet live a simpler life, the legacy and legend of the American ideal lives in the hearts of its countrymen. And sometimes it takes coffee and eggs to remind us of who we are and from where we came.
